Meet the Contributors

By Staff Writer | June 1, 2008

Having retired from the Los Angeles Fire Dept in 2007, LEE BENSON has formed V. Lee Benson Helicopter Consultant LLC. In addition to writing for R&W, Lee in February was involved in accepting a Bell Helicopter 412 out of overhaul and repair and ferrying it from Olympia, Wash. to Heli-Expo in Houston.

REBECCA CHRISTIE contributes the Program Insider page of Rotorcraft Report. Based in Washington, she formerly reported on defense for Dow Jones Newswires and specializes in defense and economic policy. She has been published in The Wall Street Journal and The Financial Times, among others.

GIOVANNI DE BRIGANTI is preparing a report on helicopter trends in Europe for our July issue. He is intrigued this month by French commandos’ recent use of a helicopter-borne sniper against modern-day pirates in Somali and British use of the same in Iraq. He tracks the rotorcraft business for Rotor & Wing from his base in Paris.

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RION HALEY joins R&W as managing editor. She spent more than 15 years working in film and television as a producer and scout. Before coming to us, she spent a year as managing editor of our sister publication, Aviation Maintenance.

BARNEY O’SHEA helped introduce helicopters into the British Army Air Corps and assisted in setting up the Australian Army Aviation Corps. A recipient of the American Helicopter Society’s Gruppo Agusta International Fellowship, he is a guest lecturer at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology and other universities.

RAY PROUTY wrote R&W’s Aerodynamics column from 1980 to 2000. During the first 12 years, three compilations were published, "Helicopter Aerodynamics," "More Helicopter Aerodynamics" and "Even More Helicopter Aerodynamics." His Ask Ray Prouty column is a reader favorite.

ERNIE STEPHENS recently began teaching an Introduction to Rotorcraft Operations course in the Washington area for Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (from which he holds a Bachelor of Science degree in technical operations management and a Master of Science degree in aeronautical science).

RICHARD WHITTLE is a regular contributor to R&W. He also writes about military affairs for The Dallas Morning News and working on a book for Simon & Schuster about the V-22 Osprey. Late last year, he visited with the U.S. Marine Corps Osprey squadron operating in Iraq.